Goose Lake Monster
by thequeenxofhearts
Summary: The gang head to Goose Town to solve the mystery of the Goose Lake Monster. Set after the events of Scooby-Doo: Stage Fright. Rated T to be safe, (some chapters mention suicide)
1. Chapter 1

It had taken the gang nearly two hours to get from Chicago to Goose Lake, but once they'd arrived, Fred was reminded of his childhood Summer Camp; Camp Little Moose. The lake was about three miles from the nearest town and was surrounded by trees and three log cabins and a boat house.

"Can I help you?" A woman asked, as she approached the Mystery Machine. She was wearing a navy jumper with a grey jacket and thick jeans and waterproof boots. "My friends and I heard about your monster problem." Fred said.

"Reporters are not welcome here! I told you that!" The woman said angrily. "We're not reporters, we were just wondering if you needed help capturing the monster." Fred said.

The woman sighed, "Oh, I'm sorry. My name is Julia Howard, I own Goose Lake." She said. "I'm Fred, this is Daphne, Velma, Shaggy and Scooby." Fred said.

"How long have you owned this lake?" Velma asked. "My parents owned it." Julia said, "I inherited it after they died." She said.

"How long has the monster been attacking your lake?" Velma asked. "A few months, nobody believed it was real until that picture was published." Julia said. "Charlie Shipman, the owner of a local sailing club, had to move to another lake after his boats were attacked on the lake." She said. "A fisherman, Peter Stevens, took a picture of a large fish he caught, and in the background was the picture of the monster." She said, "Since then I've had reporters from all over the state." She said. "I had to call the police to get them to leave."

"What can you tell us about the monster?" Daphne asked. "The lake has been in my family for nearly 20-years, my parents bought it when the land was for sale." Julia said.

"20 years before they bought the lake and the land, there was an accident." She said, "In the Summer of 1979, a group of 10-year-old boys used to swim in the lake." Julia pointed over the lake, "There used to be rocks over there, they eroded away over the years, but they used to jump off the rocks and into the lake."

"They'd spend hours at the lake. One day, one of the boys, Timmy Preston, he was about to jump off the rocks, but it was slippery, and he lost his balance, he hit his head on the way down into the water." Julia said. "His friends because they thought he was being silly, but when he didn't come back up, they went in after him." She said.

"From what I heard, 3 of the boys went in after him, it took them a few attempts because Timmy's body had sunk to the bottom of the lake, he was unconscious. The other two boys jumped on their bikes and rode back into town to get some help." Julia said.

"The boys pulled Timmy out of the lake, and up onto the grass. One of the boys tried to perform CPR on Timmy, but it wasn't working. By the time the ambulance and the police arrived, Timmy was already dead." Julia said.

The gang exchanged looks, "What happened to his friends?" Fred asked. "They were interviewed by the police, but they all said it was an accident and Timmy just slipped and hit his head." Julia said. "But Johnny, one of the boys, told the police that he saw something in the water, he couldn't say what it was and one of the police officers said it was probably just a fish, but Johnny said it was too big to be a fish." Julia said.

"To this day he still claims that something was in the water."

"So, the monster has nothing to do with Timmy's death?" Daphne asked, Julia shook her head, "It doesn't seem like it." She said. "It sounds like the monster was in the lake before Timmy died." Fred said.

"The lake has been here for hundreds of years," Julia began, "The town was built nearby, they didn't want the towns people polluting the lake, so they kept it at a distance. After Timmy's dead, nobody went near the lake. Then it was up for sale, and my parents bought it and they built this log cabin." Julia said. "When I was twenty, though my parents owned the lake, I ran it as a business. I had a successful sailing club, then went I had my daughter, Charlie Shipman gave me rent to run a sailing club, then Peter Stevens ran a fishing club."

"The lake was left to me in my parents will after they died, and it became even more successful as the years went by, but now the monster is attacking sail boats, I've lost visitors." She said.

"Julia, is there a library in town?" Fred asked. "Yes, there is." Julia said. "We'll do some investigating in town, come on gang." Fred said.

Julia watched the gang leave in the Mystery Machine, then she looked at the lake, getting the feeling that she was being watched. But by who?

Or what?


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

"So, like, what are we lookin' for?" Shaggy asked as the gang walked through the library. "Shaggy, we talked about this on the way here." Velma said, she sighed, "We're looking for a town history book or newspaper from the 70's."

"Ok, Shaggy, Scoob and I will look down this side, Daph, you and Velma look that way." Fred said, the gang thought that strange, Shaggy and Velma exchanged looks. "Alright, then." Shaggy said awkwardly.

The gang split up.

Daphne and Velma looked through the bookshelves; actually, Velma looked through the shelves, Daphne just stared at it. Velma looked at her.

"I guess, it was just for the show, wasn't it?" Daphne said, quietly. "Daph," Velma began, but she sighed, she didn't know what to say.

Daphne sighed, "Forget about it." She sighed.

"Like, what's up with you Freddy?" Shaggy asked. "What?" Fred asked. "You and Daph usually pair off." Shaggy said. "I thought of changing it up a bit, change is good." Fred said. "Rou rate rhange." Scooby said. "Yeah Fred, you hate change." Shaggy said.

Fred sighed, "Let's just find this book and get out of here." He said. "What buggin' you buddy?" Shaggy asked. "Nothing." Fred said, walking away from the conversation and continuing his search for the book.

Velma found the town history book and sat at the nearest table; Daphne went off to look for the old newspapers.

Velma opened the book and began to read; the town was built in 1920 by Alexander Olden and his son Joseph Olden. Some people believed that Alexander named the town Goose Town, because when they discovered the lake it was full of geese.

The lake was used by the townspeople; there were games on the dry land and water sport activities. The town was built 3 miles away from the lake to avoid polluting it. The Mayor, Joseph Olden, wanted to keep the town and the lake clean and litter free.

"Hmm…" Velma mumbled, reading the page. People stopped using the lake in 1995. "Julia said people stopped using it in 1979." She said to herself, she continued reading, there was nothing about the Goose Lake Monster or anybody drowning in the lake in 1975 or 1979.

Daphne had finally found the newspapers, the search had taken her mind off Fred, but she kept seeing him by the bookshelves with Shaggy and Scooby.

She looked for the newspapers from the 1970's and found nothing, so she looked for newspapers from the year 1996, she found a newspaper dated _July 12th 1996_; a 15-year-old boy, named Edward Hamper, drowned in Goose Lake, the article didn't say much, only that Edward Hamper's body was never found in the lake when police sent a dive team in to retrieve him.

She continued looking through the newspapers, and after a tedious search, she found a newspaper dated _August 17th 1996_, and an article, actually an obituary; a 16-year-old boy named Timmy Preston committed suicide, just over a month after Edward Hamper's death. The obituary mentioned that Timmy's best friend was Edward Hamper.

Daphne went to find Velma and tell her what she'd found.

"So, everything Julia told us about Timmy Preston drowning, was all a lie?" Fred asked, Velma had gathered the gang when she learned of Daphne's discovery.

"Why did she lie to us?" Shaggy asked.

"I don't know, but maybe we should return to the lake." Velma said.

The gang piled into the Mystery Machine, Velma sat in between Fred and Daphne.

You could cut the tension with a knife, Scooby and Shaggy sat in the back trying to make as much noise as possible whilst eating a bag of Doritos. Usually Velma would have snapped at the for being so loud, but she didn't want to create anymore tension in the van.

"I think, when we get back to the lake, we should get a boat out there and see what we can find." Fred said. "That's a bit risky, Fred." Daphne said, stubbornly, Fred sighed. "I agree, but we promised Julia we'd figure out what was going on, now we know she lied to us, we have to figure out what is really going on." Velma said.

Finally, after a _long_ drive, they arrived at Goose Lake.

The gang climbed out of the van, they knocked on Julia's from door.

"Oh, you weren't long, did you find what you were looking for?" She asked. "Not sure." Velma said, "Can we borrow a boat, we'd like to go out on the lake."

"Umm…sure." Julia said. "Go into the boat house and there's a row boat in there." She said, pointing to the cabin a few feet away.

"Thank you." Fred said.

The gang walked over to the boat house. The row boat was the only boat in the boat house, Shaggy and Fred dragged it to the lake and the gang climbed in and they slowly rowed to the middle of the lake.

"What are we looking for?" Shaggy asked. "Anything suspicious." Velma said. "Like, the Goose Lake Monster?"

Though they sat next to each other, Fred and Daphne didn't look or speak to each other, the sudden change of their behaviour towards each other was very bizarre; they'd kissed each other only yesterday, now they were acting as if they hardly knew each other. Velma knew that Daphne liked Fred, and Shaggy and Scooby knew that Fred liked Daphne.

Maybe their 'argument', (if you could call it an argument) was Fred's fault, he was the one who decided to pair off with Shaggy and Scooby and send Daphne off with Velma, though it was only to look around a library, he'd usually paired off with Daphne, it had been a little bit weird since their kiss on Talent Star, but neither of them could tell if the other had really meant it, or if it was just for the show.

"Ok, stop here." Velma said, Shaggy and Fred stopped rowing and the boat slowed. "We're near enough in the middle in of the lake." She said. "No what?" Shaggy asked. "We just wait, keep a look out for anything in the water." Fred said.

The gang sat in silence, Fred and Daphne still ignored each other, Shaggy's stomach stared to growl, "Like, I left my snacks in the van." He sighed.

Scooby looked in the water and watched the fish swim under the water. Imagining a tuna sandwich, and then his stomach started growling too.

Then the boat started to rock.

"Like, what's happening?" Shaggy asked, grabbing onto the side of the boat. "I don't know, Shaggy!" Velma exclaimed.

"Ronster!" Scooby exclaimed. "What?" Shaggy asked. "Maybe it's the monster who's been attacking the boats!" Fred exclaimed. The gang were sprayed with water that was being splashed up by the rocking boat.

The boat stopped rocking, the gang exchanged looks, Scooby slowly looked in the water, but nothing was there, it seemed that whatever had caused the rocking had gone.

Then, without a warning, the boat tipped over and the gang were thrown into the lake.

They surfaced, seeing the boat upside down. "Daphne!" Fred exclaimed, he could see Velma, Shaggy and Scooby, but not Daphne. "Daphne!" He screamed.

Scooby went under for her.

When the boat tipped over, and the gang were thrown into the water, Daphne saw something moving under the water; it looked like a fish swimming away from the tipped boat, but she realised it was much too big to be a fish.

Then she saw Scooby swimming towards her, realising she couldn't hold her breath for much longer, she swam up to the surface.

"Daphne! Are you ok?" Fred asked. Daphne nodded, wiping the water out of her eyes. The gang swam to the dry land.

Julia came running out of her cabin, "Oh my goodness!" She exclaimed, "Are you ok?"

"I think so." Velma said, as she climbed out of the water. "I saw something." Daphne said, "It was swimming away from us." She said.

"Maybe it was the shock, Daphne. Probably an hallucination." Fred said. "I know what I saw Fred!" She snapped. "And before anyone says anything; it was too big to be a fish!"

"Come on, get inside." Julia said, ushering the gang into her cabin, "I'll get you some towels and some hot chocolate." She said.

She looked back at the lake as she closed the door behind her.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

"Like, this is one sweet hot coco, Julia." Shaggy said, sipping the hot beverage, Velma ate the cream and marshmallows off the top of hers. "I can't take all the credit, my daughter picked it out." Julia smiled.

The gang sat in the living room by the fire with towels wrapped around their shoulders, except for Daphne who stood by the window watching the lake, the hot chocolate getting colder by the minute.

She _had_ seen something in the lake, something that was bigger than a fish, but that wasn't the only thing that bothered her about it; Julia was hiding something, they all knew that.

The sight of whatever was in the lake, played in her mind; the murky water and the green tail swimming away from them. She tried to think, logically, what it could have been; a crocodile would have attacked them, plus its tail was forked unlike a crocodile's pointed one. 'Sharks have forked tails', she thought, but sharks don't usually live in old murky lakes, besides it also would have attacked the gang. But whatever it was, it moved fast.

She remembered watching a nature documentary with her grandfather, one of the episodes was about sharks, and she knew that they didn't swim as fast as that 'creature'.

"It's getting dark outside," Julia began, "You guys can sleep in my spare bedrooms tonight." She said. "Thank you, Julia." Velma said. "I'll get the rooms ready." Julia said, "I'll help you." Velma said, finishing her hot chocolate then following Julia upstairs.

Julia made pasta for the gang, which was delicious.

Then they went to bed. Daphne and Velma slept in the smaller bedroom and Fred, Shaggy and Scooby shared the bedroom next door; which had bunk beds, much to Shaggy's delight.

When Velma woke in the middle of the night for the bathroom, she noticed the moon shining through the window, she was sure she'd closed the curtains. But it wasn't until she returned from the bathroom, that she noticed Daphne standing at the window, looking out at the lake.

"Daph, you ok?" She asked, Daphne looked at her, before turning to stare back out the window. "I thought you were asleep." She said. "I needed to use the bathroom." Velma said.

"What's the matter? Can't sleep?" Velma asked. "Velma, I know I saw something in the water earlier, whatever it was, it was fast." Daphne said.

"But that's not all that's bothering you, is it?" Velma asked. "It's Fred as well."

"I don't know, Velma. The last few months, I got the impression that he liked me, he kissed me the other day and now he's acting like it never happened." Her eyes started filling with tears, "He just kissed me for the show, didn't he?"

"I don't know, Daph, I'm not an expert in relationships." Velma said, "But I think Fred really likes you." Daphne looked at her, "It doesn't feel like." She said.

"I've seen the way he looks at you, Daph. Just give it time, maybe the kiss just made him nervous." Velma said. "You know what boys are like." She said, Daphne smiled, wiping her eyes.

"So, like what are we going to do today?" Shaggy asked, eating a bacon sandwich. "We know that Edward Hamper drowned in the lake, but we don't know how. I mean like, was he alone or with friends?" Velma asked. "And we need to find out Daphne saw in the lake yesterday." Fred said.

"I think we should split up." He said. "Good idea, Fred." Velma said, "Shaggy, Scooby and I will get the diving masks and wet suits out of the Mystery Machine and search the lake, you and Daphne head into town and find out what you can on Edward Hamper." She said, Shaggy and Scooby looked at Velma, it was usually Fred who divided the group, but there was no arguing with Velma, Daphne knew what Velma was doing.

"Ok." Fred said.

"Like, do we really have to search the lake?" Shaggy asked. "Yes, we do." Velma said, sternly, "Now hurry up and eat, so we can get started with this."

Shaggy and Scooby got their masks and wet suits out of the Mystery Machine and the three of them suited up, ready for diving. Luckily, Julia was visiting her daughter at her brother's house a few towns away, so they had a few hours to search the lake.

Daphne and Fred climbed into the Mystery Machine and drove into town. They were silent until Daphne spoke up; "If you're wondering why I kissed you, it's because I like you." She said, "I wasn't expecting you to act like this."

She was glad to get it off her chest.

He took a deep breath. "I'm sorry for the way I acted," He said, "I didn't know what was supposed to happen after the kiss; do we carry on like it didn't happen or…or do we start a relationship? But I really like you."

Daphne's cheeks turned red and her heart began racing.

They arrived at the library, she decided it would be best to talk later and get on with the mystery for now.

Back at the lake; Velma, Shaggy and Scooby were suited up and ready to find out what was hiding in the lake, if there _was _anything hiding there.

"I think we need to go to the middle of the lake, that's where the boat tipped over yesterday." She said. "Like, don't remind me." Shaggy said.

They went into the lake, swimming to the spot where the strange events on the boat occurred. The water was murky, they knew it might take a while before they found anything.

After a bit of swimming around, Velma found something, it looked like the entrance to an underwater cave. Shaggy tapped her shoulder and pointed up; they swam to the surface. "Like, we're not going in there are we?" He asked.

"Yes," Velma said, "But if its too dangerous, we'll go back and wait for Fred and Daphne before we come back." Velma said. "Ro no!" Scooby exclaimed, putting his diving mask back on, Velma rolled her eyes and the three went back under the water, into the underwater cave.

The library books and old newspaper articles didn't give Daphne and Fred much information about Edward Hamper.

"Excuse me." Daphne asked a passing librarian. "Can I help you with something, Miss." The librarian asked, she was an older lady, probably in her late 60's but she had a soft face and kind eyes. "Yes, we're investigating the monster of Goose Lake, and we just wondered if you knew anything about Edward Hamper." Daphne said.

"Unfortunately, not, he was only fifteen at the time of the drowning." The librarian said. "They didn't find his body in the lake; someone started a rumour that he _became_ the Goose Lake Monster." The librarian said.

"Edward's mother, Josie, lives in the town, around the corner and it's the blue house with the sunflowers outside." She said. "Thank you." Daphne said.

"Have a good day, kids." The librarian said.

They decided to leave the Mystery Machine in the library parking lot and walked to Josie Hamper's house, as it was just around the corner.

As they walked along the street, Daphne looked in some of the shop windows, one of the ones that caught her eye was an antique shop with an old typewriter in the window; when she was younger, her grandfather taught her how to use his typewriter, he thought it was the most important item in his house.

Suddenly, she was caught off guard when Fred slipped his hand into hers, she looked at him and her was smiling at her; proud of his spontaneous action. Her heart began racing and she had to look away because she was blushing so much.

"I think that's her house." Fred said, pointing to a beautiful, little blue house with a white picket fence surrounding it. They saw the sunflowers growing in the front garden as they walked along the stone path to the house. Daphne knocked on the door, it opened slowly, and an elderly woman poked her head around the door, "Hello?" She asked.

"Hello, Mrs Hamper?" Daphne asked, "We're investigating the monster of Goose Lake, can we speak to you?" She asked.

"Are you reporters?" Mrs Hamper asked. "No." Daphne said. Mrs Hamper opened the door and allowed them into her house.

"So, what do you want to know?" Mrs Hamper asked.

"Is this Edward?" Daphne asked, looking at a picture on the side table, Mrs Hamper smiled, "Yes, that's my boy on his 15th Birthday." She said.

"What happened the day Edward drowned in the lake?" Fred asked, Mrs Hamper sighed, "I was at work, it was Summer 17-years ago." She said, "I was getting ready for work, and Edward said he was meeting his friends. I trusted Edward, he was a good boy, always did what he was told and never got into trouble." She said, "He had a lovely group of friends, too."

Mrs Hamper took a deep breath, "I was at work when my manager asked me to come to his office, there was a police man in there, he said there was an accident and Edward had drowned in Goose Lake." Tears began to form in her eyes and her lip quivered.

"They said that one of his friends had called the police, Edward fell in the lake and he didn't come back up, the police searched the lake, but they couldn't find his body."

"Mrs Hamper," Fred began, "Was there ever a story about a boy named Timmy Preston drowning in the lake?" He asked, Mrs Hamper's eyebrow furrowed, "Timmy Preston was Edward's best friend." She said, Daphne and Fred exchanged looks, "He died a few months after Edward drowned." Mrs Hamper said.

"How did Timmy die?" Daphne asked. "His mother said he committed suicide, she found him dead in his bedroom." Mrs Hamper said, "He was devastated after Edward died. The newspapers didn't do much of a report on it, only his obituary."

"Do Timmy's parents still live in Goose Town?" Daphne asked. "Timmy didn't know his dad, but his mother died last year." Mrs Hamper said.

"Do you know who Edward was with on the day he died?" Daphne asked. "He didn't say who he was going out with, but I know who his closest friends were; obviously Timmy Preston, they'd known each other since pre-school, a boy called Johnny Green who he'd known since middle school, and a girl Edward had a crush on her, her name was Julia Howard." Mrs Hamper said.

Fred and Daphne exchanged looks.

"Ok, thank you for your time, Mrs Hamper." Fred said. "Please, if you find out what happened to Edward, please come and see me." Mrs Hamper said. "I promise, we'll tell you everything we find out." Daphne said, Mrs Hamper smiled at her.

Daphne and Fred returned to the Mystery Machine and headed back to the lake.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

"We found an underwater cave." Velma said. "It looks like someone has been in there recently." She said.

"Well, guess what we found out?" Daphne asked. "Nothing, in the library." Fred said. "But we went to see Edward Hamper's mother, she said that Timmy Preston was Edward's best friend, and he died when he was 16." Daphne said.

"What?" Velma asked.

"She said that Edward drowned in the lake when he was 15, a month later Timmy Preston committed suicide." Daphne said, "Mrs Hamper said she didn't know who Edward was with when he died, but she said his closest friends were Timmy Preston, Johnny Green and Julia Howard."

"Julia Howard?" Shaggy asked. "Apparently, Edward had a crush on Julia." Fred said, Velma climbed into the Mystery Machine, she grabbed her laptop; "I wonder if we can find Timmy's death certificate or his autopsy report." She said. "Why?" Shaggy asked.

"It's a little bit strange that Timmy Preston committed suicide a month after his best friend died, and his body isn't recovered." Velma said, "Without a body to prove a death, how would you know that he's actually dead?"

"Hmm… Good point." Shaggy said.

After a few minutes of searching, Velma found Timmy Preston's death certificate, followed by his autopsy report; "Wow." Velma said. "Cause of death is asphyxiation, but the manner of death is unknown."

"What?" Fred asked. "Look at this." Velma said, pointing to a paragraph on the report. "The cause of death was asphyxiation, but the manner of death is unknown. The police couldn't find anything near his body that Timmy could have used to strangle himself with, but there was no sign of a break-in."

"The case was shelved." She said.

"Ok, maybe could speak to Timmy's parents?" Shaggy asked, Fred shook his head, "His mother died last year, and he didn't know his dad."

"What else did you guys find in the cave?" Daphne asked. "Only a fire pit, but we should check it later." Velma said.

The car drove along the dirt road and pulled up next to the Mystery Machine; Julia was home.

"Hey kids." She said, climbing out of her car, Velma closed her laptop. "Hello, Julia." She said.

"What are you kids up to?" Julia asked, closing her car door. "Oh, we just got back from town, we went to see if we could find out more on this lake monster, we think we might be close to solving this mystery, but we'll need some more time." Velma said.

"Oh," Julia said, "Ok, well I'm going to make some a sandwich, are you guys hungry?" She asked. "Yes please!" Shaggy and Scooby exclaimed, Julia laughed, "Ok then." She said.

She went into the cabin.

"We can't go back into the lake now." Velma said, "But maybe we should go later." She said. "Later?" Daphne asked. "When it's dark, we'll come back." Velma said.

"Is that really safe?" Daphne asked. "We've got underwater flashlights in the van." Fred said.

"Alright." Daphne sighed.

After dinner, Julia went to bed. The gang waited a while to make sure Julia was asleep before they went down to the Mystery Machine to gear up for searching the lake.

Shaggy and Scooby were mentally preparing themselves for the scary journey back to the cave, by eating a box of Scooby Snax.

Fred, Daphne and Velma were already suited up, ready to go back into the lake and search the cave.

After finishing the Scooby Snax, Shaggy and Scooby suited up, Fred grabbed the underwater flashlights and the gang went into the lake. Velma leading them to the cave.

So far, they hadn't seen anything with their flashlights, and hopefully nothing had seen them.

As they swam through the entrance of the cave, they saw some light in the distance.

They swam slowly but as the water became shallower, Fred motioned for the gang to turn their flashlights off and stay underwater. He slowly rose to the surface to try and get a look at what was in front of them, he saw a fire lit on a sandy are and a man sitting by the fire.

He went back under and led the gang out of the cave. They went to the surface.

"Like, what did you see Fred?" Shaggy asked, pulling off his diving mask. "A fire, there's a man sitting by the fire." Fred said. "What did he look like?" Daphne asked. "I couldn't see his face properly, but he looked quite muscular and he had dark hair." Fred said.

"Come on, maybe there's a way into the cave." Velma said, swimming towards the rocks, the gang followed her.

The gang climbed out of the lake and up onto the dry grass, taking off their masks.

"Like, where would the entrance to the cave be?" Shaggy asked. "Hmm…" Velma said, taking a few steps forward, "The underwater entrance to the cave is here." She said, pointing to her feet, then she took a few more steps, "We saw the man sitting here." She said, again pointing to her feet.

"So, there should be an entrance to the cave around here." She said, motioning to the area round her.

The gang searched for the entrance, but they couldn't find it, so they looked around for anything suspicious, but the only suspicious thing Daphne, Fred, Scooby and Velma noticed, was Shaggy walking around in a circle.

"Shaggy? Are you ok?" Fred asked. "There's something wrong with the ground." Shaggy said. Fred stepped over to where Shaggy was walking in a circle, and he noticed a sudden change in the firmness of the ground.

"He's right." Fred said, he felt around for something on the ground, "Ah-ha!" He exclaimed. The gang gathered around Fred, he pulled something out of the grass; a rope.

He pulled the rope and a small square part of the ground lifted, "I think we've found our way in." Velma said.

The gang climbed into the hole, "Like, do we have to do this?" Shaggy asked, quietly. "Yes." Fred said.

They expected to be in an underground tunnel, but they just dropped into the cave, they could see the light from the fire glowing on the wall.

Expecting the man to be sitting by the fire, the gang crept around the corner and they came face-to-face with the man.

"Who are you?" He asked, "How did you find my cave?" He had brown eyes, dark hair and a thick beard, and he was muscular.

"Sorry sir." Fred said, "We're trying to solve the Mystery of the Goose Lake Monster."

"Goose Lake Monster?" The man asked, Fred nodded.

"Excuse me, sir." Velma said. "But what is your name?" She asked.

"Edward." He said, "Edward Hamper."


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

"I'm sorry, what?" Shaggy asked.

"My name is Edward Hamper." He said.

"Edward Hamper?" Fred asked.

"You're supposed to be dead." Daphne said.

"That's what I thought." Edward said, he sighed.

"What's going on?" Velma asked. "That's what I'd like to know." Fred said.

"Sit down." Edward said, leading the gang over to his fire pit. "I'll start from the beginning." He said. "It was 17-years-ago, I came to the lake with my friends, Timmy, Julia and Johnny. The weather reports said it was going to be the hottest day of the year, so we came to the lake early before anyone else got here." Edward said.

"I liked Julia, but Johnny liked her too, and he was much more competitive and attractive than I was." Edward said. "Johnny knew that I liked Julia, but he knew that she liked me too, but Johnny wanted Julia for himself. So, when we were at the lake, Julia and I were talking, not about anything important, but how beautiful the lake looked with the sun shining on it." Edward said.

He cleared his throat, "Then, out of nowhere, Johnny pushed me into the lake, and he held me under the water. I could hear Timmy and Julia screaming. And then I blacked out." Edward said, recalling the horrific memory. "I remember, when I woke up, I saw Timmy. He brought me to this cave, and he said he'd been back with some help, but nobody ever came. And I never saw Timmy again."

The gang exchanged looks. "Timmy died a few weeks after your day at the lake." Daphne said, sympathetically. "Timmy's dead?" Edward asked, Daphne nodded.

"How?" Edward asked.

"Believed to be suicide, but the police can't find enough evidence to support that." Velma said. Edward's head fell into his hands, Shaggy put a hand on his shoulder.

"Why did you come looking for me?" Edward asked. "You're the Goose Lake Monster, aren't you?" Fred asked, Edward shook his head.

"Zoinks!" Shaggy exclaimed, pointing at the water. The head of the lake monster was sitting on the water, its large yellow eyes watching them.

Daphne was relieved that it _was_ the monster she'd seen in the lake, but at the same time, she wished she'd imagined it.

The monster sunk under the water and appeared to be swimming away.

"Freddie!" Daphne exclaimed as Fred dived into the water and swam after the monster.

"Come on!" Velma exclaimed, the gang and Edward followed her up to the entrance.

The monster swam to the surface. So did Fred, panting because he wasn't wearing his mask. Fred was fast enough to catch up with the monster.

He grabbed the monster, who tried to fight Fred off, but Fred was stronger, and he dragged the monster to the rocks where the gang was watching.

Shaggy helped Fred pull the monster out of the water.

Velma saw a zipper on the back of the monster and Fred pulled the head off.

"Johnny?" Edward asked. "Ok, like what is going on?" Shaggy asked.

"What's going on?" The gang saw Julia running towards them, "I got up to use the bathroom and I heard a commotion." Julia said, then she gasped. "Edward?" She asked.

"What's going on?" Velma asked. "Edward, you're supposed to be dead!" Julia exclaimed.

Edward shook his head.

_17-years ago_

_"Get off him!" Timmy exclaimed, throwing Johnny to the ground. He pulled Edward's limp body out of the water, "You killed him!" Timmy screamed._

_"What have you done Johnny?" Julia exclaimed._

_"Julia! Get some help!" Timmy exclaimed, but Julia didn't move, she looked at Johnny, who shook his head._

_Timmy began to perform CPR on Edward._

_After several attempts, it seemed that Edward was gone but suddenly, he coughed up water. Timmy rolled Edward onto his stomach and patted his back as Edward coughed._

_"You ok, Buddy?" Timmy asked, Edward nodded, rolling onto his back. "Thanks Tim." He said, weakly._

_Timmy turned around, realising Johnny and Julia were gone, he shook his head, disappointed in his so-called friends._

_"Come on." Timmy said, lifting Edward up and helping him walk._

_He walked him to the grassy area above the lake, pulling the rope and he slid into the entrance, catching Edward as he fell in._

_He sat Edward down by the fire pit and made a fire. "Stay here," Timmy said, "I'm going back into town to get some help, you're too weak to ride your bike." He said, Edward nodded._

_"I won't be long." Timmy said, climbing out of the cave._

_Edward waited and waited, but Timmy didn't come back. He waited until the next day, but neither Timmy nor anyone else came into the cave to find him,_

Present day

"What happened to Timmy?" Edward asked.

"I saw him on his bike, racing back into town." Johnny said. "I followed him back to his house, I told him that if he told anyone what had happened at the lake, I'd kill him. I guess he feared me, and he knew what I was capable of." He said. "But I found out a few weeks later that he went to the police and told them what had happened, so Julia and I told the police that Timmy had been acting weird since your disappearance. They came up with the conclusion that Timmy was suffering from the traumatic experience and he was just looking for an answer." Johnny said.

Edward glared at him.

"So, I went to his house, I climbed through the window and I told him what would happen if he told anyone about the morning at the lake. So, I strangled him with his shoe lace, and then I made it look like he'd committed suicide." Johnny said.

Tears streamed down Edward's face; Timmy was his best friend since they were toddlers, for the last 17-years he'd always assumed that something bad had happened to Timmy when he didn't come back, or maybe nobody believed him, or perhaps the lake was closed.

"And you knew the whole time?" Edward asked, Julia nodded, tears falling down her face. "I'm so sorry Eddie!" Julia cried.

"It's not me who you should be apologising to, it's Timmy." Edward said, "I can't believe I actually liked you." He said bitterly.

"Why did you become the Goose Lake Monster?" Fred asked. "When I went to Timmy's house, and he told me Edward was still alive and, in the cave, waiting for Timmy to return with some help. I became the Goose Lake Monster to scare people away in case someone saw Edward and he'd tell everyone what happened." Johnny said.

"But where did you hide?" Daphne asked, "I mean you weren't living in the cave."

Julia sighed, "My parents never bought the lake." She admitted. "Johnny and I did, under the alias of Robert and Amanda Howard; my parents." She said.

"So, you knew Johnny was the monster?" Daphne asked. "And I guess there was no sailing club, fishing club or water sports?" Fred asked. "There was, but it stopped after Julia and I bought the lake. A few fishermen visited the lake, but I couldn't risk them finding Edward, so I scared them away." Johnny said.

"So, where were you hiding, you weren't in the cave." Daphne said. "No, I wasn't." Johnny said, "I was living in that cabin over there." He pointed to a cabin at the other end of the lake, much further away from Julia's log cabin.

"We were dating just after Edward 'died'," Julia began, "But we broke it off just after I became pregnant." Julia said.

"You…you and Johnny have a baby?" Edward asked, Johnny sighed. "She's not mine." He said.

Edward's heart began racing, "Is…is it mine?" He asked, the gang exchanged looks. "No." Julia said, Velma rolled her eyes. "She's Timmy's."

"What?" Edward and Johnny asked. "Like, now I'm even more confused." Shaggy said.

"The same day Timmy told the police that you'd killed Edward, I went to see if Timmy was ok." Julia said, "He was clearly distraught about what had happened, I didn't know Edward was alive. I comforted Timmy, I don't know why, but we started kissing and then… I don't know how it happened… Jessie is Timmy's."

Edward ran a hand through his thick hair, "Oh Timmy." He sighed.

Police arrived at the lake a few minutes later, Julia and Johnny were arrested. Johnny was charged with first-degree-murder and Julia was charged with being an accessory in Edward's supposed death, but was the charge was dropped. Edward was reunited with his mother.

Shaggy and Scooby were inside Julia's house, making themselves sandwiches for the journey home and Velma was made sure to go the bathroom several times before they left so she wouldn't have to go at the gas station.

Daphne and Fred were loading their diving suits and masks back into the van.

"I knew these diving suits would come in handy at some point." Fred said happily, Daphne smiled. They sat in the back of the Mystery Machine, waiting for the others to come back.

"It looks nicer now that there's no lake monster hiding in there." Daphne said, as they sat watching the lake. "It does." Fred said, smiling.

Fred slid his hand into hers, like he did when they were walking through the town yesterday. Daphne smiled, resting her head on his shoulder and wrapping her arms around him.

Fred lifted her chin up with his hand, and before Daphne could react, Fred gently pressed his lips against hers.

It was a soft kiss, like the one on the stage the other night; but with more privacy. Daphne savoured the feeling of his lips against hers as he kissed her slowly, his hand stroking her cheek softly.

They stared at each other when they pulled apart, both smiling. Suddenly they were brought back to reality but the horrendous sound of Shaggy's belching. Scooby laughed, "Like, that tasted like bacon." Shaggy laughed.

Fred smiled, pressing a quick kiss to Daphne's lips before they climbed out of the back. "Like there you guys are." Shaggy said, his mouth full of sandwich. "Where's Velma?" Daphne asked.

"She's just finishing up in the bathroom." Shaggy said, "She really doesn't want to use the gas station bathroom again." He said.

"Ruck!" Scooby said, shaking his head.

"Hey guys!" Edward exclaimed, arriving at the lake on his bike. "Edward? I though you'd be spending the day with your mom." Fred said. "I am, but I told her I need to speak to you guys first." He said.

"Are you ok?" Daphne asked, Edward nodded. "I just wanted to thank you guys for solving this mystery." He said. "Johnny's finally going to pay for what he did to me and Timmy." He said.

Fred shook his hand, "We're happy to help." He said, Edward smiled. "And there's something else I need to tell you too." He said. "My mom and I are buying the lake from Julia." He said.

"That's amazing!" Daphne exclaimed. "This lake is going to be like it was before all this happened; water sports, fishing completions and I'm getting a sailing club up and running." Edward said.

"We hope it works out for you." Fred said. "Thank you, guys." Edward said again.

Velma was finally ready to go and the gang climbed into the Mystery Machine, indenting on returning home, but were ready to solve any mystery along the way.


End file.
